Wine Notes
Vintage:
2013
Appellation:
St. Helena, Napa Valley
Vineyards:
The Calafia Estate Vineyard is located in the center of the St. Helena appellation on Fulton Lane between Main Street and the Napa River. The soil is Bale Loam and contains a fair amount of cobble from the Napa River, which increases our drainage. The vineyard was planted in 2000 and one block was replanted in 2004 due to the discovery of Leaf Roll II in Cabernet Clone 337. Currently the vineyard is planted to 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Malbec, and 10% Petit Verdot. All of our clones are from the ENTAV certification program in France.
Vintage Notes:
The 2013 growing season began well with a moderate spring: not too cold or wet, resulting in a normal fruit set. The bunches were loosely to well-filled with no wings as in 2012 when Cabernet clusters were very densely packed and had one or even two wings. The summer was also moderate: warm with a few heat spikes. At veraison there was a judicious thinning or green harvest to remove green or pink fruit. The fall heat was also moderate and harvest began and continued normally. Skin and seed maturity was fully achieved. The resulting wines have good color, black fruit profiles, are elegant on the palate, and have fine grain tannins for aging.
Fermentation & Aging:
The grapes were crushed October 13th, two days earlier than in 2012. The Brix (sugar) was 26.5 degrees and acid was 4.5 grams/liter. The must was thoroughly sorted, removing all green “stem jacks”. Fermentation took place in an open-top tank and punched down (piegage) 3 to 4 times per day. Pressing was very gentle, using a traditional basket press. The barrel-aging regime was 50% new and 50% once filled French Oak using Chateau-Ferre style barrels that were very tight grain. The staves were air dried for 30 months and received a medium toast level. This combination of factors allows the oak to seamlessly integrate with the wine giving a supportive background structure with fine grain tannins, along with toasty oak nuances in the aroma and flavor profiles.